7 Possible Reasons You Didn’t Get Interview Feedback

Have you ever wondered why it's so hard to receive interview feedback? Below we explain the 7 possible reasons why you aren’t getting feedback and what you can do differently to increase your chances.

1. You seemed like a litigation risk

As someone with experience in both processing employment claims and interviewing job candidates, the last thing a company wants to do is invite litigation.

It is very easy for people to file legal claims against companies when candidates feel a job hiring process violates their civil rights. Winning these legal battles is much harder. But it is all very expensive for the interviewing company. The insurance and lawyers to pay for legal battles costs companies millions each year. It has become a necessary evil in the US litigious society.

As a result, you may get no interview feedback for something you never intended to do. Did you come across as desperate? Did you mention your age, race, disability, or preference during the process? The hiring manager may view you as a litigation risk. In fact, the only reason you may have gotten an interview in the first place was to avoid possible litigation.

2. No one had the time

It does not mean the company does not care. Advancements in technology have made the job application process lightning fast. The result is that more people can apply to more jobs faster than they can get feedback.

One job listing can receive as many as 500 applications. This leads to 20 or 30 interviews. It is physically impossible to give personal feedback to so many people. It takes time and time is money.

So, view automated rejections as a form of interview feedback. It is all the closure you need.

3. The feedback is too complex

Companies are "people" and "people" are complicated. Businesses may have problems that have nothing to do with you. Anyone who has ever done an interview panel may know something about this.

First, you are asked questions by someone who seems interested. Next, others try to shoot you down. It’s not you. It’s them. In these situations, the interview feedback is the job interview itself.

See You are seeing how some people want to hire you, but others do not. See their internal conflict for what it is and learn from what works. You did not get interview feedback due to internal conflict or staff disagreements.

4. You were defensive in your interview

I have seen this before. A nice hiring manager wants to give interview feedback to a job candidate. Then, the interview feedback turns into a post on Glassdoor because the job candidate felt insulted.

The job candidate took the interview feedback as a personal attack. Unfortunately, those who are told, “Your experience is not the right fit”, may respond with, “How dare you! I have years of experience!” If you seem defensive or argumentative during an interview, do not expect feedback.

5. Your interview was horrible

You cannot lie to yourself during the job hunt. Take some time after an interview to think about how it honestly went.

Work relationships parallel relationships with loved ones. How? There is the initial phase of “one person feeling another person out”. So, if the hiring manager knows you are wrong for the company relationship, the energy of this person changes. The hiring manager goes from, “Great to meet you!” to an energy of “Please leave and make this easy on both of us”.

If your interview had awkward pauses, unfulfilling questions, or an uncomfortable silence, you have all the interview feedback you need.

6. Questionable online presence

It is hard to believe, but Facebook started way back in February 2004. By September 2004 I was already tasked with “researching online activity of prospective MBA’s”. I knew Facebook was something college grads talked about in the office and it was exclusive.

Specifically, I remember being called into an office to answer the question, “Do you think this person is crazy?”. The hiring manager found a poem written online by a job candidate, who recently broke up with a boyfriend. This taught me, “Keep your private thoughts private unless your business is making them public”.

You may be the nicest, smartest, most trustworthy candidate in the world. But if your public content tells a different story, do not expect hiring managers to be so understanding. Remember that social media sends a message to the world about “how you think”. Do you want all your thoughts to be public, even those who may hire you?

If you are not sure how your presence is being perceived, change your privacy settings or remove questionable content.

7. Some companies don't bother

“Due to the high volume of interest in our available roles, our recruiters will only reply to the most compatible candidates.”

Take a moment to think about this. You appreciate the feedback, but the company finds it pointless. Do you think you should be working for that company? It may be tough to apply for jobs, interview and receive no feedback.

There is a positive side to it. Interview feedback, in its rarity, will help you discover who you should be working with! Those who choose to help you with interview feedback are the ones you want to be helping!

The FMP Contributor

The FMP Contributor is the daily publication of Find My Profession. Your #1 career advice resource.

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